Sharpie, how I love thee

My goal in life is to own one of these magnificent beauties!

"sharpie is a unique type of sailing vessel that evolved to suit a particular need in a specific locale is not widely written about in modern sailing literature. The sharpie is not an all-around, general purpose type of craft, and those who sail and build them do so because they understand their unique capabilities and limitations and find them ideal for their purpose."

"Sharpies also proved to be fast and handy under sail, making them even better suited for their tasks as workboats, and also leading to their adaptation as cruising and racing yachts. The type was made famous in time by designers like Howard L. Chapelle and examples such as Commodore Ralph Munroe's Egret, a 28-foot double ender designed specifically for the shallow inlets of south Florida and the rough Gulf Stream. At first glance, one would think that the flat-bottomed hull would be totally unsuitable for rough water, and it's true that pounding can occur, especially while motoring on modern sharpies. But under press of sail, when the hull is heeled well over, the hard chine between hull bottom and topsides presents a nice V-shape to the waves. This hard chine aides in preventing leeway and most designs have retractable centerboards or leeboards for better windward performance where the water is deep enough. The only real limitation for offshore use is the fact that most designs are not self-righting like deep-keeled monohulls, due to having a higher center of gravity with their ballast inside. This is the trade-off for shallow draft, but for most coastal and short distance island-hopping where weather windows can be taken advantage of, it is not an issue. Quite a few modern designers offer their renditions of the sharpie type for those who want to build, but one designer who stands out in his knowledge of these boats is Reuel B. Parker, who literally wrote the book on them"

http://scottsboatpages.blogspot.com/2008/01/what-is-sharpie.html http://www.sailboatlistings.com/view/26380 http://www.storerboatplans.com/NW18Ketch/NIS18ketch.html